Tennessee

American  

[ten-uh-see] / ˌtɛn əˈsi /

noun

1. a state in the southeastern United States. 42,246 sq. mi. (109,415 sq. km). Nashville. TN (for use with zip code), Tenn.

2. a river flowing from eastern Tennessee through northern Alabama, western Tennessee, and southwestern Kentucky into the Ohio near Paducah. 652 miles (1,050 km) long.

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Tennessee British  

/ ˌtɛnɪˈsiː /

noun

1. Abbreviation: Tenn.   TN.  a state of the E central US: consists of a plain in the west, rising to the Appalachians and the Cumberland Plateau in the east. Capital: Nashville. Pop: 5 841 748 (2003 est). Area: 109 412 sq km (42 244 sq miles)

2. a river in the E central US, flowing southwest from E Tennessee into N Alabama, then west and north to the Ohio River at Paducah: the longest tributary of the Ohio; includes a series of dams and reservoirs under the Tennessee Valley Authority. Length: 1049 km (652 miles)

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Tennessee Cultural  

1. State in the south-central United States bordered by Kentucky and Virginia to the north; North Carolina to the east; Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi to the south; and Arkansas and Missouri to the west. Its capital is Nashville, and its largest city is Memphis.

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One of the Confederate states during the Civil War.

Example Sentences

Thus man’s fortunes are destined to be violent and comic, as is the case with Hazel Motes, a Tennessee war veteran who in “Wise Blood” founds a revivalist church based on the denial of God.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 19, 2026

Across Mars’s offices and plants in New Jersey, Tennessee and Kansas, some 100 employees are working on its natural-color efforts.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 18, 2026

That’s exactly what happened at East Tennessee State.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 18, 2026

Keith began his career while still studying at Middle Tennessee State University, where he received a degree in integrated studies and media management.

From BBC • Jun. 18, 2026

Josephine Anderson Pearson, head of the Tennessee State Association Opposed to Woman Suffrage, worked against ratification of the amendment.

From "Votes for Women!" by Winifred Conkling